My friend Mady was telling me last week at the beach about another mom at our school who would go home from her summer place two weeks early and spend the entire time just cooking and freezing dinners for the year. Wow.

I'm not a big cook ahead type of person. I've never even liked the idea of doing the prepare all the meals on Sunday thing, but I love the idea of being that organized (and fetishistic) about planning ahead for the school year. And I guess that's kind of the thought behind our Back to School Guide.

One of my favorite things to obsess about just before school starts is which classes and afterschool programs will my kids take this year. The Back to School Guide has about 50 different programs listed and I'll be adding lots more as I continue to seek out and obsess over all the options and cool offerings for NYC kids this Fall.

You'll also find

This is the second in a series of posts listing free demo classes for this Fall. Find more free demo classes and exclusive discounts in our first free demo class post.

New Manhattan Movement and Arts Center Children’s Program – Meet the teachers, try out classes, and enjoy additional fun and surprises at an Open House from 9:30 to 5 p.m. on Sunday, September 14, at Manhattan’s newest arts center. The MMAC Children’s Program, launching September 15, offers classes ranging from Mommy & Me to art, music, dance, theater, yoga and martial arts, for ages toddler to teen. Information: (212)787-1178. 

SPECIAL DISCOUNT FOR Mommy Poppins Readers - $25 off when you enroll at the Open House; use discount code “MOMMY POPPINS".

Apple Seeds- Demo reservations are taken on a first come first serve basis, check out their website to see which class fits your little one. To reserve a spot, call 212.792.7590 - note that there is a limit of 2 demos per family, per semester.

One of the great joys for me of working on this site has been the ability to help other people. Typically that means helping people figure out what to do this weekend or giving them some useful bit of information or other. But this summer I had the opportunity to do something even more profound when I was contacted by Jennie Velazquez of Seneca House.

There are over 15,000 homeless children in New York City and Seneca Houses provides temporary housing for over 100 of them. This summer I worked with Jennie and her Executive Director Maritza Alvarez at Seneca House to help fill these children's summer with the types of wonderful activities that my own children take for granted (Thank you to The Children's Museum of Manhattan, Splish Splash Water Park and others for donating their admissions).

Now that summer is winding down, these kids face a new challenge. While we are all doing our back to school shopping for crisp new school supplies, the children of Seneca House have nothing.

Summer is closing in on us so make the most of it with this weekend's line-up of FREE events! 

Photo Credit: Theodora Ravago

RiverFlicks for Kids - if you still haven't caught any outdoor movies this summer, here is your chance. Head over to Hudson River Park to catch the original Willie Wonka and munch on some free popcorn. Check out our Free Outdoor Movies for Kids post for a full line up of other outdoor movie festivals. Friday, movie starts at 8:30pm. FREE

Summer Streets - enjoy the 6.9 miles of car free route

Get with the program, Oldie Square Pants, backpacks are for babies. Cool kids today carry messenger bags. But finding cool messenger bags that fit pint-sized hipsters is not so easy, so we scoured the net for the coolest little messenger bags for our mini trendsetters and have gathered them here for you (after clearing them through our own pint-sized coolness testing dept., of course.)

Cool girls want stuff that's not too flowery, but definitely not boyish either like this Little Miss Sunshine Messenger Bag. It's on the large side at 12" x 15" so it's better for older kids, but at $19.99 from Target or Amazon, it fits the bill perfectly.

The Reason For a Flower by Ruth Heller is one of my favorite children’s books. It teaches us that “the reason for a flower is to manufacture seeds.” My last post was Wildflowers Everywhere, well those beautiful spring flowers have produced many interesting fruit. Fruit is the part of the plant that holds the seeds. Within all of these fruit are seeds you can collect.

Playing with seeds is fun! Collect a number of different fruit and seeds and have your children sort them, count them, draw them, contrast and compare their shapes and colors. Some of the seeds can be put in soil and they will germinate or grow right away. Some might need to be planted outside and go through one winter before they germinate. It’s fun to walk up to a tree and see what surprises are in store for you. But we are not the only ones who need and value fruit and seeds. Our city’s wildlife: seed eating birds, squirrels, chipmunks and other rodents depend upon the fruit and their seeds that our trees produce. Here are some fruit to look for in midsummer.

This week's hot tips and important stories for parents, so you can be the most-in-the-knowiest.

But first - congratulations to the winner of our Kiddie Cruise Giveaway, lucky reader Mabl!  Sorry to hear that you have been reading a set of functional specs for work all summer, at least your 5 year old has better taste in reading materials with the new Brambly Hedge book, Wilfred to the Rescue. We are very happy that now you can put down that work reading and spend some time enjoying your summer on the Kiddie Cruise! 

And now, onto the news....

Standing Room Only. Check this out - the Transit Authority is about to unveil seatless subway cars. They will have folding seats which will be locked in the up position during rush hour.  Pros, more room for strollers.  Cons, nowhere to sit when you are pregnant, oh wait, thats the same as it is now.

Make the most of your weekend and explore some new places with this weekend's line-up of FREE events.

Learn to Walk the Dog - Old-school toys are still the best and what could be better than the yo-yo? Head over to the South Street Seaport this Saturday for the International Yo-Yo Open, presented by YoYoNation.com. You can see the world's best yo-yo players and soak up the entertainment, education, and eye-popping yo-yo ability. Festivities begin at 11AM. FREE.